Frozen
by NoirAnge
Summary: For Duo and Heero, ice skating is always a competition. But what to do when things go wrong?


This is a gift fic written for DeeJay as part of the Gundam Wing Holiday Gift Exchange 2019 on tumblr (see thisweekingundamevents).  
Rating: G  
Pairings: 1x2, 3x4

This is basically pure fluff. Enjoy!

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"Catch me if you can!" Duo yelled over his shoulder, gliding away around the edge of the frozen pond. Heero smiled, more than up to the challenge, and hurried after him.

"Always a competition with those two," Wufei observed as he finished lacing up his skates.

Quatre grinned as he did the same. "It makes them happy. A lot of couples are like that, you know."

"Not you and Trowa," Wufei replied.

"True," Quatre agreed, smiling at his boyfriend. "We find other ways to enjoy ourselves."

"Sure do," Trowa said, smiling back with a glint of mischief in his eyes.

"Don't make me gag," Wufei said in mock disgust.

"Speaking of competition," Trowa interjected, "last one on the ice is a rotten egg!" He quickly walked over to the edge of the pond, pushing out onto the ice in one graceful motion. Wufei spluttered in his wake while Quatre just laughed.

On the other side of the large pond, Duo was skating backward, the better to taunt Heero. He stuck his thumbs in his ears and waggled his hands as he stuck out his tongue. Heero rolled his eyes, pushing himself harder to catch up.

Duo turned around once again and began racing in earnest, but Heero was catching up to him. Heero reached out, fingers brushing the tip of Duo's braid. Duo looked back to see Heero closing in on him and a look of determination came over his face.

"No way am I letting you beat me. See if you can follow this!" Duo turned sharply and headed for the center of the lake, hoping Heero wouldn't be able to follow the quick maneuver.

"Duo, no!" Heero called after him. "It's not safe!"

"What do you mean it's not–" With a resounding crack, the ice beneath Duo broke open and he plunged into the icy waters.

"Duo!" the other four cried in unison.

"Heero, don't get too close!" Quatre called as Heero skated toward the hole in the ice. Quatre looked around, seeing a tree near where Wufei had stopped. "Wufei, see if you can break off a branch!"

Wufei complied immediately, and succeeded in breaking off a good sized branch. He skated over to where Heero was anxiously waiting, watching his lover struggle to stay afloat in the frigid waters.

Wordlessly, Wufei handed him the branch, and Heero lowered himself onto the ice, lying down and scooting forward until it reached Duo.

"Duo, grab on!" It took the braided man a few moments to catch on, but he soon took hold of the branch, hanging on for dear life. By this time, Wufei had joined Heero down on the ice, and the two of them began to pull.

Before long, Duo was pulled to safety and lay shivering on the ice. Heero dropped the branch and scooped Duo up in his arms, skating back to the edge of the pond where they'd left their shoes as quickly as he could.

Trowa was already there, shoes back on, and he took Duo from Heero and began sprinting toward the cabin they were sharing. Heero and the others followed as soon as they'd changed back into shoes, skates lying forgotten in the snow.

"Get towels and blankets," Trowa ordered when the others arrived, as he quickly divested Duo of his sodden clothing.

"I've got the towels," Heero said, rushing toward the bathroom.

"Blankets," Quatre said, hurrying off.

"I'll get him some dry clothes," Wufei announced before heading toward the bedroom Heero and Duo shared.

Heero and Quatre arrived back just as Trowa got Duo out of his last piece of clothing, the braided man still shivering violently. They began towelling him dry, and quickly ran into a problem.

"His hair is frozen solid. How are we going to dry it out?" Trowa asked.

"Cut it off," Wufei ordered as he returned, arms laden with warm clothing.

"N-n-no," Duo insisted weakly. "N-not my hair."

"No way," Heero agreed. "We'll wrap it in a towel and put it over the back of the couch so it won't be touching him."

"This is no time to be sentimental. We need to get him warm, and that means getting rid of all sources of wet and cold as quickly as possible."

"No, Wufei," Heero replied. "You don't know what it means to him. He'll never forgive us if we cut it off."

Wufei was about to argue the point when Quatre grabbed his arm. "Let it go, Wufei."

"Fine! Just don't complain to me when we can't get his body temperature back up!"

"Let's stop arguing and start helping him," Trowa interjected. He put aside a damp towel and reached for a dry one, wrapping it around Duo's braid as Heero had suggested.

Heero began dressing him, grateful that Wufei had thought to bring the clothing. He'd barely been able to think straight, he was so panicked about the danger Duo faced.

"I'll make him some hot cocoa," Quatre said, heading for the kitchen. "Wufei, can you help me?" he called over his shoulder. He obviously didn't need the help, but Wufei followed him anyway.

Duo was soon swathed in layers of warm clothing and wrapped in blankets for good measure, but Heero's panic refused to abate.

Trowa took hold of his shoulder. "He'll be alright, Heero. Why don't you do something about his hair. There's a blow dryer in your bathroom, right?"

Heero turned and hurried to get it without a word, and Trowa shook his head, turning to Duo. "I've never seen him so scared. Goes to show how much he loves you." Duo smiled weakly and nodded his head, still shivering. Trowa sat down beside him, wrapping an arm around him and offering what warmth he could.

Heero returned with a brush the hair dryer, quickly plugging it in. "I'm going to be as careful as I can, okay Duo?" he said. Duo nodded. "I'll start by drying the hair next to your scalp, then work from the bottom up." Duo nodded again, and Heero set to work.

Once that was finished, Heero unwrapped the braid, happy to see that the warmth of the cabin had begun to thaw the ice that had formed. He removed the tie at the bottom and aimed the hot air at the very ends.

"Here you go Duo," Quatre said loudly as he returned to the room, Wufei in tow. "Hot cocoa, complete with marshmallows."

"Th-thank you," Duo replied, raising his voice to be heard over the hair dryer as he reached for the steaming mug.

"Careful," Quatre admonished. "Don't want to burn your mouth."

"Sure thing, m-mom," Duo joked, still shivering as he blew on the hot drink to cool it down.

Quatre smiled, happy that Duo was feeling well enough to joke around, then turned to Wufei. "You have something to say?"

"I… yes," Wufei said stiffly, clearly a little uncomfortable. "I'm sorry, Duo. I didn't know why your hair meant so much to you. I never would have suggested it if I had. I was just worried."

"It's okay, 'Fei. I know it was because you cared."

Wufei's shoulders slumped, clearly relieved, then he sat down on the other side from Trowa and wrapped an arm around Duo as well.

Heero barely heard the exchange, so focused was he on the task before him. He'd managed to thaw about six inches at the end of the braid so far. He turned off the hair dryer and began to carefully brush the still damp locks, gently untangling them. Once done, he turned the hair dryer back on and started on the next section.

"Now if I remember correctly," Quatre began as he looked through the DVDs next the the TV across from the couch, "your favorite Christmas movie is Hook , right Duo?" Duo nodded. "I'll get that started then," Quatre declared, pulling the movie off the shelf and putting the DVD into the player.

Duo's shivering had finally abated by the time the opening credits were done. He felt warm again at last, and even more, the knowledge of how much his friends cared lifted his spirits. He only wished he could be cuddled up against Heero.

He looked at Wufei, Trowa, and Quatre, glad to see they were engrossed in the movie. Only Heero had ever seen his hair down, and having Heero brush it out in front of the others had him very self conscious. Maybe his friends could sense that though, as none of them so much as glanced at Heero's progress.

Heero finally managed to thaw and brush all of Duo's hair, but it was still damp, so he set to work drying it the rest of the way, putting all of his focus into it. If he let himself think about anything else, he'd be imagining losing Duo in the frozen waters and the panic would return, no matter that Duo was safe and sound.

Heero lost himself in the feel of Duo's silky hair running through his fingers, in the sight of the chestnut waves glinting with golden highlights. He continued to brush it long after it was dry, letting the repetitive motion sooth his worries. Finally, he began to braid it, smiling as he remembered how long it had taken him to learn how to do that well. Tying it off, he rose and came around the front of the couch to see Duo fast asleep, his head on Trowa's shoulder.

"Looks like I should get him to bed," Heero said, and the others turned to look.

"No wonder he's exhausted after all he's been through," Quatre replied, picking up the remote and turning off the TV. Heero leaned down, lifting Duo into his arms and heading toward their bedroom.

Duo's eyes fluttered open, and he smiled sleepily as his eyes focused on his lover's face.

"Hey, Heero."

"Hey yourself," Heero said, setting Duo down on the bed, then leaning down to kiss him gently.

"Are you still cold? Or do you want to take off a few layers before getting under the covers?"

"Pretty sure I should take off the winter jacket," Duo said as he did so. "And this wool sweater too."

"If you're sure," Heero replied, stripping down to his boxers.

"Definitely. I'm starting to feel overheated anyway." Duo did so, then climbed into bed, eyes quickly beginning to droop. Heero got in next to him, pulling him into his arms. He kissed Duo again, this time with a hint of desperation, then rested his forehead against Duo's.

"You scared me, Duo. I thought I might lose you."

Duo ducked his head, nuzzling into Heero's neck. "M'sorry," he mumbled sleepily.

"Just don't do it again."

"Okay…" Duo's voice trailed off as he fell asleep, safe in Heero's arms. Heero remained awake, reveling in the feel of Duo pressed against him, solid and real and alive.

"I love you, Duo," Heero murmured, pressing a kiss against Duo's temple, panic finally subsiding. "I love you so much." Soon after, he followed Duo into dreamland.

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I hope you enjoyed it! Comments are always welcome. I'd love to hear what you think!


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